There Are Just Some Places
by Kazle
Summary: Gabe muses over a few things. Written on a short muse, one shot. Please RR! 11004-new chapter
1. There Are Just Some Places

A/N: I read this book a few years ago, so I don't know much about their appearances. This was just a sudden muse. UPDATE 1/7/03 ~revised it a little  
  
There Are Just Some Places  
  
By: Kazle  
  
"There are just some places that you can't go back to."  
  
That's what Jonas had told him, at least. And Jonas's word was good enough to trust, wasn't it? Ever since he had come to know the world around him, Jonas had been there like an older brother to guide him through it. So why not believe him now?  
  
"It is a world without color, without feeling, without life. You wouldn't want to go back there."  
  
Vague little pieces of information were all that Gabe could wheedle out of Jonas. He could tell that the older teenager did not want to discuss it with him. Every time he had tried to bring it up, Jonas's eyes would become shadowed and blank. And the young boy had never been very good at reading people's emotions through their eyes.  
  
Gabe knew nothing about himself in his past, except for what Jonas had told him. And besides, he had only been a baby when he had lived there. He had no idea of who his family was either. Who were his parents? What kind of people had they been?  
  
"I do no know." Had been Jonas's answer.  
  
He somehow knew that the dark haired boy he had grown up with was not his real brother. Wasn't related to him at all, in fact. Though they had similar hair color and eye color, they did not quite look the part that they played to each other.  
  
"I do not know who my real parents were either, " Jonas said, at the young one's downcast face. "But I had one whom I considered to be my father figure."  
  
And then he'd be gone again, eyes distant and somewhat saddened.  
  
"It was shielded at all times. So protected, you could barely even breathe."  
  
Gabe could scarcely comprehend this thought and it made him shudder. He could barely sit still, always had to be up and moving.  
  
"Don't let this plague your mind though." Jonas would say cheerily afterwards. "Try not to think on it too much, come on lets go outside for a bit."  
  
But he did think about it. A lot. And it made him feel a little guilty too. But he couldn't help but wonder about his origins. What really made that unspeakable place so horrible? Why didn't Jonas want to talk about it?  
  
"It's a place better left in the past."  
  
Maybe so, but it frustrated him to no end.  
  
"Jonas, did you leave anyone behind there?" He had been about five years old at this time.  
  
Jonas had stared at him a moment, then stared out in front of him at nothing. A few moments passed and Gabe was starting to think that he wasn't even going to receive a response.  
  
"Yes, I did," he had said finally.  
  
Gabe had frowned.  
  
"Really? Hm, that must have been hard."  
  
Jonas looked faintly surprised.  
  
"Yes, it was."  
  
Gabe's frowned deepened and he cocked his head to the side at his only family member.  
  
"Does it still hurt?"  
  
Jonas had looked away.  
  
"No."  
  
And Gabe had accepted that answer with a grin. But now he knew that Jonas had been lying. He must have left an important person behind. Perhaps, that father figure he had spoken of. And Gabe wondered about his own family that he didn't know.  
  
"It's a place better left in the past." Jonas's words echoed.  
  
And then Gabe realized. What was he doing, sitting around here and moping about things from long ago? He knew no other family than Jonas throughout his life. And that was enough for him. That place, where he had been born, he had no memory of. No recollection at all whenever Jonas had somewhat described it.  
  
He shook his head and grinned as he watched the autumn leaves spiral down from the trees, swirling in an array of red, brown, yellow, and orange.  
  
"There are just some places that you can't go back to."  
  
END  
  
A/N: Nice and short on my muse. Please review. 


	2. Better Left Behind

There Are Just Some Places  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own anything.  
  
Chapter Two: Better Left Behind  
  
By: Kazle  
  
(Set some time after the last chapter)  
  
~I'm not supposed to be scared of anything, but I don't know where I am~  
  
The silence was deafening, and the air was so wrought with tension, Gabe felt as though he could swipe a knife through it and it would just shatter. The whole previous week had been a build up to this moment. Jonas had been acting strangely, as though someone would jump out of the bushes along the road they were walking on at any given moment. When they arrived at Rena's place a few days ago, his adopted brother had been silent and distant, as though he was completely detached from the world. Jumping at the slightest noises and throwing frequent glances towards the window.  
  
~I'm wishing I could move, but I'm exhausted and nobody understands~  
  
"Is something wrong?" Gabe had ventured to ask once they were home.  
  
Jonas threw a sharp glance at the younger boy and looked away immediately.  
  
"No, of course not." He said.  
  
Liar.  
  
"Well, something is obviously bothering you, care to share?" Gabe frowned.  
  
Jonas didn't respond.  
  
~I'm trying hard to breathe now, but there's no air in my lungs~  
  
Gabe climbed into bed, utterly exhausted, both mentally and physically. The white sheets were welcoming enough and he was soon asleep in a matter of minutes. The next thing he expected to see was the timid light of day creeping into his room, so he was quite disoriented when a pair of hands roughly shook him awake.  
  
He was about to protest vehemently to the rude wakeup call, when one of those hands covered his mouth. Gabe opened his bleary eyes and glared up at Jonas, but the glare faded as he saw the serious look in his older sibling's eyes.  
  
"We have to leave now."  
  
Leave? What's he talking about? And at this ungodly hour, as well, Gabe thought, disgruntled.  
  
"What? Why?" He managed to ask through a yawn, rubbing his eyes.  
  
But Jonas was already at the door.  
  
"Just hurry up."  
  
~There's no one here to talk to, and the pain inside is making me numb~  
  
"Where are we going, anyway? How long are we going to be gone for?" Gabe questioned as Jonas packed quickly.  
  
"Don't worry, we won't be gone long." Jonas replied, not looking up from what he was doing.  
  
Those words seemed familiar.  
  
Jonas exited the room in search for something.  
  
Gabe watched as his back disappeared around the corner and into the kitchen.  
  
"That's what you said last time," Gabe mumbled.  
  
~I try to hold this, under control~  
  
"Follow me and stay silent." Jonas had instructed and without another word slipped into the forest.  
  
Grumbling in his mind, Gabe mutely followed. Staying silent, he found, was easier said than done. It was autumn and fallen leaves were all over the ground, crunching beneath his feet no matter how carefully he stepped on them. He could see Jonas up ahead of him, seemingly making no noise at all as he swiftly made his way.  
  
Although nothing seemed to be happening, Gabe was getting more and more anxious as time passed. The increasing unease wasn't helping matters much. Each step he took, the crunching sound seemed to magnify a thousand times and over, and he was sure that someone or something had heard it.  
  
The alarm only increased when Jonas stopped abruptly. Gabe didn't know that his adopted brother had been so close and bumped into him accidentally. He looked apologetically up at Jonas but the older boy wasn't paying attention to him.  
  
Gabe watched him; Jonas's eyes were closed, his brow furrowed. Suddenly his eyes flew open.  
  
"Quickly!"  
  
And then he took off with Gabe close in his wake.  
  
~They can't help me, 'cause no one knows~  
  
Gabe followed Jonas as he ran, panting as he struggled to keep up. Something about Jonas's eyes in that moment had haunted him. Not being able to perceive emotions though the eyes of anyone, he wasn't sure why; but it stuck with him and he suddenly had a very chilling thought.  
  
They're catching up..  
  
He didn't know who 'they' were, but something told him, nothing good would come out of being caught. His eyes fell on Jonas's back for a moment and he his gaze hardened slightly in resolve.  
  
~I'm feeling weak and weary walking through this world alone. Everything I say, ever word of it, cuts me to the bone~  
  
Gabe didn't know how long they had been running, but it seemed to be an eternity since he had been rudely awakened. What he would give to be back there now..  
  
They came to a small clearing and Jonas halted him.  
  
"We'll rest for a second before continuing." He said.  
  
The both sat down for a few minutes, catching their breath. Jonas took out a water bottle and took a few sips before returning it to his bag. A minute later, he stood up. Gabe watched him as he moved to the edge of the clearing and made no move to follow him.  
  
Jonas seemed to feel that the younger boy was not moving and turned around.  
  
"What are you waiting for? We need to leave now."  
  
Gabe's face was shadowed; he could feel Jonas looking at him.  
  
"No," he said, looking up, gaze hardened.  
  
Something flickered in Jonas's eyes. Surprise? Gabe didn't know. He took a deep breath.  
  
"Not until you tell me what is going on." He said, hoping his voice didn't waver.  
  
Jonas frowned with incredulity.  
  
"This is *hardly* the time to be speaking about such things." He said firmly, turning around slightly.  
  
Gabe stood up and when he spoke, it was with a hardness that Jonas had never heard in the younger one's voice.  
  
"Then when *will* it be the time to? That's what you always say. You're just avoiding the question. It might as well be now that you tell me."  
  
"Gabe," Jonas glared at the said boy, "You're being unreasonable."  
  
"Unreasonable?" Gabe all but yelled, "*I'm* the one being unreasonable? What about you? We wouldn't be going through this *now* if you had told me before."  
  
He glared at Jonas, waiting for a response.  
  
Cursing at Gabe's stubbornness, he then felt something.  
  
"Gabe, we must leave this place, now."  
  
Gabe did not detect the urgency in the older boy's voice and just crossed his arms and waited.  
  
"Not until you tell m -"  
  
He was cut off as Jonas came crashing into him, and they both tumbled into the dirt.  
  
"What was that fo-" He looked up and his eyes widened as he looked upon Jonas's face that was contorted in pain.  
  
~I've got something to say, but now I got no where to turn~  
  
"What -"  
  
Jonas stood up and grasped Gabe wrist, and literally dragged him into the forest. A noise that sounded like loud 'bangs' followed them. Gabe had never heard anything like them before. They pierced the silence in earsplitting sounds.  
  
~It feels like I've been buried under All the weight of the world~  
  
Jonas didn't let go of his wrist as they went on and on until they came to a cluster of trees and bushes. He pulled Gabe in them and just the look shot at him silenced the younger boy.  
  
The silence was deafening..  
  
Jonas has his eyes closed in concentration and suddenly Gabe felt as though he had been plunged into cold. He closed his eyes, and curled up into a ball trying to ward of the impending chill.  
  
And then it was over. He opened his eyes and looked over at Jonas, whose eyes were still closed. The older boy was drench in perspiration and he looked flushed.  
  
And image suddenly flashed before Gabe's eyes of Jonas knocking into him.  
  
He looked and then found it with widening eyes. A dart was lodged into the back of Jonas's left shoulder. The older boy didn't seem to notice it.  
  
Gabe felt sick when he realized what he must do. He shifted closer to Jonas, hesitating. Gabe had never done well with blood, just seeing it made him nauseous. He glanced at Jonas's face and bit his lip, but his eyes were determined.  
  
Jonas hissed with pain as Gabe extracted the dart as quickly as he could. And then he fainted.  
  
Gabe stared at the dart in his hand and the let it fall to the ground, his eyes wide. He looked at it and then Jonas and then at his filthy hands.  
  
~I try to hold this, under control~  
  
A/N: I wasn't planning on making this chapter, but there you go. Song from Three Doors Down. Please R/R. 


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